Moon crater bigger than Rome’s Colosseum found

A newly discovered crater on the Moon, measuring approximately 728 feet in diameter and up to 141 feet deep, has been identified by scientists. This makes it the largest lunar impact crater formed in recent times and even larger than Rome’s Colosseum. The discovery was made in May 2024 by NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), which captured images of the lunar surface and later revealed the impact caused by a fragment from an asteroid or comet striking the Moon’s surface.

Researchers at the Lunar and Planetary Institute in Houston named the crater after Thomas McGetchin, a former director, and described it as a once-in-a-lifetime observation. This impact, happening roughly once every 132 years, provides a valuable opportunity for scientists to study the Moon’s surface changes and the distribution of material due to such impacts, as well as how quickly the lunar surface is renewed.